Collection 4: Ruth Park and D'Arcy Niland papers relating to Les Darcy, ca. 1906-1997

MLMSS 8048/Boxes 1-14
MLMSS 8048/Boxes 15X-18X

sub-fonds

ca. 1906-1997

Textual Records, Clippings, Photographs

151989

2.68 metres of textual material (14 boxes and 4 outsize boxes)

Darcy Niland held a lifelong interest in the career of his namesake and devoted many years to assembling Darcyana. Throughout his life he collected names, anecdotes, scraps of paper with scribbled notes, newspaper articles, photos and conversations relating to the personal and professional life of Les Darcy. Because of his sudden death in 1967, D’Arcy Niland was never able to complete the story of Les Darcy. Using the extensive material collected over many years, Ruth Park with the assistance of Rafe Champion, wrote the biography, Home Before Dark: the story of Les Darcy. It was published in 1995 by Penguin Australia.

Les Darcy (1895-1919), champion Australian middleweight boxer, won forty-six out of fifty professional fights between 1910 and 1916. In 1915 he moved to Sydney to focus on his boxing career. He won 22 consecutive fights and became a national hero. His reputation as a boxer continued to grow – until the First World War and the issue of conscription intervened. He pursued his boxing career and, rejecting an offer from a local promoter to tour Australia, accepted one to travel to the United States. Darcy fell ill in April 1917 as the result of an infection following dental surgery. He died from septicaemia on 24 May 1917, age 21.

Reference:
AUSTLIT. http://www.austlit.edu.au (accessed 22 March 2011)
National Museum of Australia http://www.nma.gov.au (accessed 28 April 2011)
Darcy Niland website. http://www.darcy-niland.com.au/LesDarcy.html (accessed 10 May 2011)

Part 1 of the archives is comprised of all background material, letters to and from and about Darcy, interview transcripts and notes, correspondence, pictorial material and memorabilia.

Part 2 consists of the manuscripts of Ruth Park and Rafe Champion's book `Home Before Dark / Ruth Park & Rafe Champion' her account of D'Arcy Niland's lifelong fascination with his namesake, his original research and interviews together with her annotations of Niland's material and her personal thoughts on the process.

BOX 1
Fritz Hollands' scrapbooks 1 & 2 (photographic prints and negatives), 1908-1922

Bosker Bill Squire's scrapbook (includes photographs), 1906-1912 (note by Ruth Park indicating that this scrapbook does not relate to the Les D'Arcy story. Provenance of the scrapbook is unknown)

BOX 2
Maurice O'Sullivan's scrapbook of American news cuttings, 1916-1917

Bill Delaney scrapbook (with note from Ruth Niland, 1995)

George Pilgrim scrapbook (lent for 2 days) - Transcript by Darcy & Ruth Niland

Australasian boxing and wrestling scrapbook (historical interest only)

BOX 3
Nat Bannister's newcuttings (79)

Paddy Cunningham news cuttings

Angus Brammall's news cuttings (The Priest and the boxer)

Les Darcy news cuttings (copies)

Printed publications: The Les Darcy American Venture / Bob Power; Jack Read's Complete Australian Boxing annual, 1934-1935; Read's Boxing Records; Life Story of Les Darcy 3rd ed. / F.J. Ferry (3 copies); Darcy Stories / F.J. Ferry (2 copies); Uppercuts / Fritz Holland; Solar Plexus

Printed publications given to Darcy Niland by ex-boxers Bob Whitelaw, Jim Sharman:
Boxing and How to Train, The Text Book of Boxing, Boxing: a Complete Record of Australasian Contests, T.S Andrews World's Sporting Annual 1933, Everlast Boxing Record, 1928, Northern Boxing Association Tournament and Rules, Sporting Life Boxing Records, 1910

BOX 4
Boyle family memorabilia - Negatives of photographs taken from a photo album, autograph book and loose pictures (original items returned to family); Negatives of Les Darcy from an unknown photo album

Tom Moran's account of the Life of Les Darcy (original carbon)

D'Arcy Niland original interviews (80), some with typed transcriptions in preparation for the book he proposed to write on Les Darcy. Includes phone interview with Mick Tobin and a `Note to Researcher 'about the content by Ruth Niland, 1960-1962, 1997

D'Arcy Niland additional interviews. Some transcribed material extracted by Ruth Niland, 1961

BOX 5
Home Before Dark, portion of 1st Draft

Home Before Dark, Final draft and discards (typescript)

Home Before Dark, Edited manuscript

Home Before Dark, Original manuscript

Early drafts, notes

BOX 6
Les Darcy newspaper articles

Conscription and class

H. D. McIntosh, Premier Will Holman and Ada Holman

Father Joe Coady (includes 1 photograph)

Mick Hawkins

E.T (Tim) O'Sullivan

BOX 7
Notes, clippings, interview reports, photographs on important boxers and others mentioned in the Les Darcy story: Bobby Whitelaw, Griffo, Harold Hardwick, Billy Hannan, Fritz Holland (includes 2 photographs), Jack (Young) Hanley, George Balzer, Chiddy Hayes, Governor Balzer, Jimmy Sharman (includes 3 photographs), Eddie McGoorty, Robert Fitzsimmons (with film transcript)

BOX 8
Jeff Smith v Stadiums Ltd

Wonderful Pearce family

Minor characters, Lilly Molloy, Ada Holman, Dr Hollywood, Frank O'Rourke, Doc Kearns, Bat Masterson

Winnie Hannan (O'Sullivan)

Frosty (Frank) Darcy

Nat Fleischer visits Maitland

Maitland notes - Ruth and D'Arcy Niland

Dave Smith memorabilia

BOX 9

Snowy Baker (includes 6 examples of syndicated U.S sports newsletter

Universal Training (Cadets)

James Vance Marshall

Les Darcy departure from Australia

Miscellaneous file of articles, programmes, photographs (2) on boxers and boxing

Emerald Street House (includes letter re: origin of plan, original and reply from Ruth Niland)

Edgar Arentz

Jack Dunleavy

Billy McNab/Regio Delaney

BOX 10
Irreplaceable Material File, No. 6

Original Les Darcy letters, postcards, notes (some copies). Includes letters to Mick Tobin, Father J.J. Coady, 1914, 1917-1961, 1968, 1994
Cables (4) sent by Mrs Darcy to Mick Hawkins at Memphis (given to Darcy Niland by Harry Hawkins; Mick Hawkins souvenir American postcards; Original (5) postcards from Les Darcy to Mick Tobin; Postcard from Les Darcy to J O'Sullivan of the Lord Dudley; Letters (3) from Father J.J. Coady to to Mick Tobin; Letter from Tom Moran to Darcy Niland; Typed copy of a letter from Les Darcy to Father J.J. Coady from the National Archives Canberra; Copies (8) of Les Darcy letters held by the Australian Gallery of Sport, Melbourne; Letter from Les Darcy to Father J.J. Coady, 1914; Copy of letter from Father Coady to P.J. Hassell with transcript from Hassell of the last meeting; Newspaper cutting of a letter from E.T. O'Sullivan to sportswriter W. Corbett; Newspaper cutting of last letter sent by Les Darcy to Mick Stapleton; Copy of Les Darcy letter to Will Lawless (Solar Plexus)

Direct personal material of Les Darcy (interviews with Elli O'Brien, Mrs G.W. Johnson, Frank O'Rourke, Mr & Mrs Cheal, neighbours and friends of Darcy), 1961, 1994

General notes on the Les Darcy collection (methods of cataloguing, early struggles to get the collection into order) and Biography; Part catalogue; Fragments of early interviews with transcriptions from tape by Ruth Niland, 1960s, 1988-1994

Birth and marriage certificates Elwin Darcy (copy)
Death certificates, Edward and Margaret Darcy (copy)
Marriage certificate (1st) of Edward Darcy to Sarah Healey (copy)

Sydney Conspiracy with notes from Ruth Niland
Later chapters of the Biography (fragments)

Important newscuttings

Darcy family genealogy

BOX 11
The Collection, The Biography, File No. 7

Letters to D'Arcy Niland from old boxers and holders of Darcyana, together with replies, 1953-1979, 1995

Correspondence with Kay Ronai (Editor) of Penguin Books Australia, concerning `Home Before Dark', 1994-1995

Correspondence mainly with Penguin Books concerning Home Before Dark, 1993-1994

Correspondence after publication of Home Before Dark, 1995

Chronologies

Collection research notes by Ruth Niland, 1994

Darcy Niland visits Maitland

Ruth Niland notes on scrapbooks (Bill Delany, Anonymous A, Puglistic celebrities, Australian Boxing and wrestling, Fritz Holland's scrapbooks 1 & 2

Notes by D'Arcy Niland on proposed book

The Times

BOX 12
America/Research for the National Times article, File No. 8

Les Darcy in America, original typescript for two part article written for the National Times

Pamphlets about U.S towns (Memphis) visited by Les Darcy in 1917

Les Darcy in America, newscuttings, notes

Letters to Ruth Niland received after publication of Les Darcy in America

Les Darcy in America, File No. 9
American notes on Les Darcy used by Ruth Niland during the writing of Les Darcy in America, 1917-1995

Les Darcy's illness and death, 1917-1991

BOX 13
Photographs: Approximately 200 photographs many unpublished and unknown

Les Darcy with other people (not American)

Photographs of men Les Darcy fought (some unfamiliar pictures of major apponents

Two original glass whole plate negatives (6 1/2 x 8 1/2 in.).
1. Note written by D'Arcy Niland `1st McGoorty fight 1915 (Photographic copy of plate glass negative in Harry Cameron and Pilgrim's collections)
2. Les Darcy with family and friends at the home of J.P. Fletcher, c. 1916 (Cameron Studios). A photographic copy of this is included in the folder of photographs of boxers, referees and writers important to the Les Darcy story.
Prior to Les Darcy leaving for America, he and a group of his friends gathered at the home of JP Fletcher. This photograph was taken to commemorate the occasion. It features, in the top corner, Les Darcy's brothers Cecil and Frank and, next to Les, Father Cody. Here are the names of the gentlemen present: Back row, C. Darcy, F. Darcy, F. O'Brien, C. Erwin, L. McGlinn, P. Mayo; 3rd row, G. Clarke, L. Drew, W. Gilligan, G. Bowcock, unknown, M. Tobin, ...Donnelly, G. Fletcher, F. Mayo; 2nd row, I. McLeod, W. McLaughlin, Les Darcy, Father Coady, ...Stapleton, ...Stapleton; front row, G.McDonald, H. Fletcher, H. Cameron.

Photographs numbered Pic. 1-35 (includes pg. numbers) included in the book `Home Before Dark'

Penguin illustrations (note by Ruth Niland, These were 2nd choices, 51 sent to George Dale)

Photographs of boxers, referees and writers important to the Les Darcy story

Boxers well known before, during and after Les Darcy's professional life

Unidentified photographs and negatives (some later identified)

BOX 14
Photographs:

Sam Langford photographs

Les Darcy in America

Original reproductions from old photographs

Les Darcy - Funeral/Memorial/Death cerifiticate

Major characters in Home Before Dark (important portraits: Fred Gilmore, Tom Andrews, Mick Hawkins, Father J.J. Coady, Dave Smith, Fritz Holland, Margaret Darcy, Lily Pearce, Hugh McIntosh, Frosty Darcy, Winnie, Harold Hardwick, Jim Sharman, Miss Scobie (early teacher)

Rushcutters Bay Stadium photographic material

Important photographs (includes inscribed photo of Jack Dempsey)

General photographs

BOX 15
Photographs:
Les Darcy photographs, mainly portraits (includes 2 photo badges)

BOX 16
File No. 10
Police Gazette (10 copies), 24 March 1917-13 April 1918
Features articles about Les Darcy, O'Sullivan, Rex Rickard and Governor Whitman and other characters in the story of Darcy's few months in the U.S. Annotated with reference of the Les Darcy story by Ruth Niland. Includes interesting references to the U.S. view of WW1 before the nations involvement and during its brief service; References to important figures in U.S. sports and political world; to Australian boxers in the States at the time as well as other Australian athletes such as Fanny Durack the swimmer.

BOX 17
Large scrapbook about old sports figures in Australia and overseas

BOX 18
Large scrapbook about old sports figures in Australia and overseas

Copyright status:: In copyright - This collection has multiple copyright owners
Rights and Restrictions Information:: No publication without prior written approval of copyright holder
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales and Courtesy copyright holder